DaVita Celebrates Extraordinary 2012

DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--DaVita,
a division of DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc.® (NYSE: DVA) and a leading
provider of kidney care services, released a year-end recap of major
milestones and achievements for the company in 2012.

“DaVita’s performance was outstanding in 2012 – from clinical outcomes
and patient care to business growth and corporate citizenship,” said
Kent Thiry, chairman and CEO of DaVita HealthCare Partners. “Every day,
our success relies on the commitment and hard work of more than 40,000
DaVita teammates, and I’m very grateful for their belief in our DaVita
community.”

Major initiatives and highlights for DaVita in 2012 included:

Clinical Excellence:

DaVita Survival Rate Leads Kidney Care Industry – In September,
the United States Renal Data System released its 2012 Atlas of Chronic
Kidney Disease (CKD) and End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). The Atlas
covers population and treatment data available in 2010; for that year,
DaVita had the lowest standard mortality rate in the industry (along
with DCI).1 According to internal data, in 2011 gross
mortality rate at DaVita fell to the lowest level ever, showing a 15%
decrease in mortality rate since 2005. This decrease represents
thousands of lives saved over a period of years.

DaVita Clinical Research Presents 13 Abstracts at NKF; 12 Posters
at ASN; Seven HEOR Posters at ISPOR- In 2012, researchers from
DaVita Clinical Research® (DCR®) and DaVita presented the results from
a number of innovative clinical improvement programs and health
economic studies originating from DaVita and its research partners.
The findings were shared at three premier health care meetings – the
National Kidney Foundation Spring Clincal Meeting, the 17th
Annual International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes
Research International Meeting, and American Society of Nephrology
Kidney Week. DCR provides a collaborative bridge between DaVita
services and the pharmaceutical and biotech research community; DCR
also shares DaVita’s dedication to improving the health and well-being
of kidney patients.

DaVita’s CathAwayTM Program Continues to
Save Lives - DaVita has made remarkable progress in reducing
patient central venous catheter (CVC) rates, a major risk factor for
serious infection in kidney patients. In 2008, DaVita established
CathAway, the company's seven-step program for reducing the number of
hemodialysis patients dialyzing with CVCs. Since the inception of the
program, DaVita has witnessed a more than 40 percent reduction in the
number of "Day 90+" catheter patients (i.e., those patients who have
been dialyzing at DaVita for 90 days or more using a catheter for
dialysis access), and the company is now at an all-time low catheter
rate of 14.1 percent for this patient population as of November 2012.
DaVita leads major dialysis providers in the industry in the use of
fistulas, the “gold standard” for dialysis access.

DaVita Patient Vaccination Rates Top 90% - Two months into the
2012-2013 flu season (as of December 1, 2012), DaVita had vaccinated
91.5% of its patients for influenza and 91.8% of its patients for
pneumonia. Vaccinations are critically important for people like
kidney patients who are at high risk for complications, helping
prevent hospitalizations and even death and supporting quality of life.

DaVita Launches Social Site NephLink to Connect Nephrologists –
DaVita launched NephLinkTM (www.NephLink.com)
this year, which is a new online physician community for kidney care.
NephLink is designed to allow physicians to discuss difficult patient
cases or practice-management issues, share best practices and ideas,
and debate the evolving health care landscape. NephLink provides
physicians with direct access to their colleagues to engage and
collaborate as a group – or one-on-one – with self-service privacy
controls. In addition to providing tools to connect and collaborate,
NephLink provides access to news, journals, events and resources from
many kidney care news syndicates and journal publishers. To register
for NephLink, any licensed physician can register at www.NephLink.com.
A brief online tour of NephLink is available at http://bit.ly/NephLinkDemo.

Patient Service:

Launch of myDaVita.com – DaVita announced an important update
to myDaVita.com to furtherhelp dialysis patients manage
their health. myDaVita.com is an online patient social
networking and virtual support center where dialysis patients can
connect with other members of the kidney care community by sharing
stories, meeting friends who are going through similar experiences,
getting advice, and supporting and inspiring others. Other myDaVita.com
resources include the DaVita Diet Helper™, which helps patients
navigate nutrition challenges with planned menus and a log to track
important nutrients. In the enhanced My Recipes section, patients and
caregivers can save and organize favorites from more than 800
kidney-friendly recipes. These online tools allow patients to be
proactive about their health, which can lead to improved clinical
outcomes and an improved quality of life.

Launch of Patient Health PortalTM– In 2012 –
in a first among major dialysis providers – DaVita launched the new
DaVita Health Portal, allowing patients to securely access their test
results and other treatment information. The application is accessible
anywhere patients have an Internet connection through a computer,
including in DaVita dialysis centers.

Business Growth:

Merger with HealthCare Partners – On November 1, HealthCare
Partners® merged into a subsidiary of DaVita’s parent company. The
parent company changed its name to DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc.
HealthCare Partners, now one of the two main operating divisions of
DaVita HealthCare Partners, has leading operations in the Southern
California, Central Florida, Southern Nevada and Northern New Mexico
areas. HealthCare Partners takes clinical and economic accountability
and management responsibility for nearly all of the healthcare needs
of a patient population. This includes the provision of professional
services rendered by primary care and specialty physicians as well as
the coordination of hospital and other services. DaVita, the other
main operating division of DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc., will
continue to provide comprehensive services for kidney care patients.

DaVita Rx® - DaVita Rx is the world’s first and largest
full-service pharmacy dedicated to serving the unique needs of kidney
patients. In 2012, DaVita Rx expanded their services to help manage
patient medications and clinical outcomes. DaVita Rx helps patients
improve compliance with their required drug regimens with refill
reminders, reviews for possible drug interactions and other services,
resulting in healthier patients and improved quality of life.

International Expansion – As of December, 2012, DaVita had 25
clinics operating in six countries outside the U.S., employing more
than 400 teammates. DaVita is managing clinics in China, Singapore and
Saudi Arabia, and owns and operates clinics in India and Malaysia.

New Research Facility Opens in Denver Metro Area – DaVita
Clinical Research expanded to Colorado this year, opening a new
facility in Lakewood. The new facility encompasses 35,000 square feet
and is physically connected to St. Anthony Hospital in Lakewood, Colo.
The 80-bed facility brought more than fifty specialized research jobs
to the area and increased DCR’s physical capacity from 42 to 122 beds
in North America. The facility supports high-risk studies and has
expanded ability to support both patient and healthy volunteer Phase I
clinical studies.

DaVita Team Moves Into New World HQ Building – This summer,
more than 500 DaVita teammates moved into DaVita’s new World
Headquarters building at 2000 16th Street in Denver. The
building was designed in collaboration with teammates, for teammates,
with sustainability and a positive working experience as top
priorities. Over 1,000 teammates had input into various design
decisions, from outdoor spaces to workspace setup to the visual
reminders of the DaVita story. The building is expected to achieve
LEED® Gold certification for the environmental concepts utilized
during design and construction. One such design concept incorporated
into the building provides 98% of teammates with exposure to direct
sunlight from their workspaces. More than 75% of total site
construction waste was recycled.

Education, Empowerment, Corporate Citizenship:

DaVita Kidney Rock WalkTM – More than 1,200
people participated in the DaVita Kidney Rock™ event in August,
helping to raise an estimated $500,000 for Bridge of Life Medical
Missions, which brings life-saving dialysis treatments to developing
countries by supporting the creation of self-sustaining clinics.
Hundreds of attendees also received kidney disease screenings from The
Kidney TRUST.

Tour DaVita ® - DaVita’s annual charity bike ride, Tour DaVita,
raised $900,000 to support Bridge of Life-DaVita Medical MissionsTM
in 2012. The proceeds from Tour
DaVita will help fund nine medical missions taking place in 2013
where Bridge
of Life volunteers will be able to install or repair 112 dialysis
machines. Through these missions, Bridge of Life will bring dialysis
treatment to more than 600 people in communities that otherwise would
not have access to this life-sustaining care.

DaVita HQ Expected to Receive LEED® Gold Rating – DaVita
expects to receive LEED® Gold certification of its world headquarters
building, designed with environmentally responsible materials and
energy efficient systems, from the use of 2850 linear feet of beetle
kill wood to water efficiency that saves over 1 million gallons of
water each year. Flooring throughout the building is comprised of pre-
and post-consumer recycled materials; more than 90% of teammates have
direct views to the outdoors; and 100% of permanent teammates receive
complimentary RTD EcoPasses. DaVita also diverts more than 85% of
materials from landfills through internal composting and recycling
efforts. DaVita was also recognized as an “EPA Green Power Partner” by
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

DaVita Jumps in Newsweek’s U.S. Green Ranking List – Newsweek’s
2012 U.S. Green Ranking List placed DaVita at number 209, up 33 spots
from 2011. Newsweek U.S. Green Rankings highlight the top 500
companies in America for leadership in environmental performance. This
is the fourth year Newsweek has compiled its green rankings; DaVita
has been ranked each year so far.

Community Service - 2012 was DaVita’s best year ever for
teammate volunteerism through “Village Service Days.” Village Service
Days include any community service performed by three or more
teammates at or on behalf of DaVita. As of December 15, 2012, DaVita
teammates had participated in over 200 Village Service Days, involving
more than 7,000 teammates and more than 11,000 hours of service.

DaVita is the dialysis division of DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc., a
Fortune 500® company that, through its operating divisions, provides a
variety of health care services to patient populations throughout the
United States and abroad. A leading provider of kidney care in the
United States, DaVita delivers dialysis services to patients with
chronic kidney failure and end stage renal disease. DaVita strives to
improve patients’ quality of life by innovating clinical care, and by
offering integrated treatment plans, personalized care teams and
convenient health-management services. As of September 30, 2012, DaVita
operated or provided administrative services at 1,912 outpatient
dialysis centers located in the United States serving approximately
150,000 patients. The company currently operates 25 outpatient dialysis
centers located in six countries outside the United States. DaVita
supports numerous programs dedicated to creating positive, sustainable
change in communities around the world. The company’s leadership
development initiatives and social responsibility efforts have been
recognized by Fortune, Modern Healthcare, Newsweek and WorldBlu. For
more information, please visit DaVita.com.